City Hall Labour call on ministers to take “swift action” over London Bridge rail failures

Government ministers have been urged to take “swift action” to bring an end to the disruption and chaos faced by passengers travelling to and from London Bridge Station.

Since Christmas passengers have been plagued by delays, overcrowding and cancellations as operators have struggled to work around the station’s rebuilding.

Unlike the Tube, DLR and London Overground which are overseen by the Mayor and Transport for London, services at the station are operated by rail firms which answer to national government.

Last week the head of TfL, Sir Peter Hendy, blamed the problems on a lack of leadership in the UK’s rail network and said his organisation would have delivered a better service.

There was further disruption on Tuesday night after signal failures and a collision between a train and man near Streatham station disrupted services.

British Transport Police officers were called to deal with crowds of delayed passengers, some of whom vaulted ticket barriers to escape the crush.

Val Shawcross, Labour’s Transport Spokesperson on the London Assembly, was among those affected.

She said: “We were promised these scenes of total disorder were behind us, but last night’s meltdown shows serious problems remain.

“It is simply not acceptable for the government to sit idly by whilst commuters, some paying thousands of pounds each year in ticket costs, are left stranded on dangerously crowded platforms, unable to get home.

“Why is the Secretary of State not here talking to passengers, talking to staff, and putting some support in place for Network Rail and Southern Rail who are clearly struggling to cope?

“There needs to be a very frank discussion with rail bosses about why the rail service has been consistently underperforming while passengers are charged extortionate amounts for the privilege of using a poor service.

“We also need swift action from the Government to deliver the reliable rail network that was promised earlier this year and that we’ve yet to see.”